UB’s “Best Value” Rank Improves, Kiplinger’s says

BUFFALO, N.Y. — The University at Buffalo’s standing
among colleges that provide a quality education at an affordable
price continues to climb, according to Kiplinger’s Personal
Finance.

UB ranks 33rd in the magazine’s 2013 list of the 100 Best
Values in Public Colleges. UB ranked 38th last year, 46th in 2011
and 70th in 2010.

“Just as we are committed to building a first-class public
research institution, the University at Buffalo is also committed
to providing a high-quality and affordable education to its
students,” Provost Charles Zukoski said. “We are
pleased to be recognized for our efforts as we continue to make UB
one of the nation’s great public institutions of higher
learning.”

Kiplinger’s started with a pool of nearly 600 public
four-year schools. It ranks institutions based on SAT or ACT
scores, admission and retention rates, student-faculty ratios,
graduation rates, as well as financial aid and student debt upon
graduation. Measures of academic quality carry more weight than
measures of affordability.

UB’s score improved “thanks to its high four-year
graduation rate, low average student debt at graduation, abundant
financial aid, a low sticker price and overall great value,”
according to Kiplinger’s. More information — as well as
sortable school rankings and other interactive features —
will be available on newsstands in Kiplinger’s February 2013
issue and online at www.kiplinger.com/links/college.

UB was listed among the top 20 schools nationwide for graduating
students with the “least
debt” in September by U.S. News and World Report. Earlier
this year, the university launched Finish in 4, a program that
pledges to provide incoming freshmen with the academic resources
they need to graduate in four years.

The Kiplinger’s ranking comes as UB, buoyed by the NYSUNY
2020 bill signed into law last year by Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo,
continues to execute the UB 2020 strategic plan. The plan calls for
enhanced educational and research excellence, improved health care
for Western New York and creation of an innovation economy that
will spur regional job growth.